Lochailort ( , ) is a hamlet in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

that lies at the head of

Loch Ailort Loch Ailort ( ; Scottish Gaelic: Loch Ailleart) is a sea loch in Morar, Lochaber, Highland, Scotland. Loch Ailort is a shallow, V-shaped loch, with the small Ardnish Peninsula on the north side, and the large, southwest-facing Moidart Peninsu ...

, a

sea loch ''Loch'' ( ) is a word meaning "lake" or "inlet, sea inlet" in Scottish Gaelic, Scottish and Irish Gaelic, subsequently borrowed into English. In Irish contexts, it often appears in the anglicized form "lough". A small loch is sometimes calle ...

, on the junction of the

Road to the Isles The A830, also known as the Road to the Isles (though it forms only a part of the historic route) is a major road in Lochaber, Scottish Highlands. It connects the town of Fort William to the port of Mallaig. Route The A830 is 46 miles long. ...

( A830) between Fort William and

Mallaig Mallaig (; ) is a seaport, port in Morar, on the west coast of the Scottish Highlands, Highlands of Scotland. It faces Skye from across the Sound of Sleat. The Mallaig railway station, local railway station is the terminus of the West Highlan ...

with the A861 towards Salen and

Strontian Strontian (; ) is the main village in Sunart, an area in western Lochaber, Scottish Highlands, Highland, Scotland, on the A861 road. Prior to 1975 it was part of Argyllshire. It lies on the north shore of Loch Sunart, close to the head of th ...

. It is served by

Lochailort railway station Lochailort railway station is a railway station serving the village of Lochailort in the Highland (council area), Highland Council area in Scotland. This station is on the West Highland Line, between Glenfinnan railway station, Glenfinnan and Bea ...

on the

West Highland Line The West Highland Line ( – "Iron Road to the Isles") is a railway line linking the ports of Mallaig and Oban in the Scottish Highlands to Glasgow in Central Scotland. The line was voted the top rail journey in the world by readers of indepen ...

. Nearby is Lochailort Inn, a

public house A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption Licensing laws of the United Kingdom#On-licence, on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the ...

, and Our Lady of the Braes, a small

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

church that was consecrated in 1874 but little used since 1964 as Sunday Mass is celebrated in the chapel at Inverailort House which is located on the opposite side of the loch.

History

The owner of Inverailort House, Christian Cameron, was a keen

photographer A photographer (the Greek φῶς (''phos''), meaning "light", and γραφή (''graphê''), meaning "drawing, writing", together meaning "drawing with light") is a person who uses a camera to make photographs. Duties and types of photograp ...

in the late 19th century. She took many photographs of the house and surrounding area but most of the glass plates were lost or destroyed when the military took over the house during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

but the surviving photographs have been published in a book. Christian Cameron is said to have died of a broken heart after much of the contents of the house were badly damaged by the army when they emptied it. The house was requisitioned by the

War Office The War Office has referred to several British government organisations throughout history, all relating to the army. It was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, at ...

at the end of May 1940 for use in the training of irregular forces as the Special Training Centre. Initially this was operated by MI(R) but became part of

Combined Operations In current military use, combined operations are operations conducted by forces of two or more allied nations acting together for the accomplishment of a common strategy, a strategic and operational and sometimes tactical cooperation. Intera ...

. Many techniques of

guerrilla Guerrilla warfare is a form of unconventional warfare in which small groups of irregular military, such as rebels, Partisan (military), partisans, paramilitary personnel or armed civilians, which may include Children in the military, recruite ...

and irregular warfare were developed there and training techniques which were adopted for

Commando A commando is a combatant, or operative of an elite light infantry or special operations force, specially trained for carrying out raids and operating in small teams behind enemy lines. Originally, "a commando" was a type of combat unit, as oppo ...

training as well as

Achnacarry Castle Achnacarry () is a hamlet, private estate, and a castle in the Lochaber region of the Highlands, Scotland. It occupies a strategic position on an isthmus between Loch Lochy to the east, and Loch Arkaig to the west. Achnacarry has a long associ ...

. SOE training was centred on nearby Arisaig House. The army moved out of the house on 20 August 1942 and, after having been taken over by the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

, subsequently became HMS Lochailort and was used for the training of naval cadet ratings to be officers on small craft used by

. The Royal Navy moved out in January 1945.Commando Country, Stuart Allan, National Museums Scotland 2007,

Film locations

The village and nearby buildings have appeared in films such as '' Local Hero'', ''

Breaking the Waves ''Breaking the Waves'' is a 1996 psychological romantic melodrama film directed and co-written by Lars von Trier and starring Emily Watson in her feature film acting debut, and with Stellan Skarsgård, a frequent collaborator with von Trier. ...

'' and '' Complicity''. The main businesses in the area are

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...

and

salmon farming The aquaculture of salmonids is the farming and harvesting of salmonid fish under controlled conditions for both commercial and recreational purposes. Salmonids (particularly salmon and rainbow trout), along with carp and tilapia, are the three ...

both in the sea loch, and in a large freshwater hatchery.

References

External links

lochaber.comLoch Ailort and the salt marshesLochailort railway stationVideo of Inverailort House
*{{oscoor gbx, NM768823 Populated places in Lochaber Sites of Special Scientific Interest in North Lochaber

History

Film locations

See also

References

External links